Chess Puzzles (lichess training thread)

[Titanoboa]

I know 2 things:

• Chess is very popular.
• Chess is not very popular.

Either way, I found chess puzzles to be a much more satisfying pastime than candy crush & similar, and just now I felt like some of you would enjoy this, but would probably never look for it on your own.

If you know how the pieces move and capture, how to castle* and how to capture en passant*, how to check your opponent's king and how to checkmate, you're probably all set.

*rarely the best move in puzzles.

http://en.lichess.org/training/

Register and start playing! (only need to submit a username and password. Email and further info is optional).

I'm currently going back and forth between 1900 and 2000, I hope I'll soon be good enough to be at 2000+ consistently. Anyone here better than me?


(I've never tried candy crush myself - fb invites discouraged me - but I've seen friends play it.)

[ConVicT]

I like a game of chess myself.
I have a sort'a triangle thing with my friends.
What I mean is: I can always beat friend 1, and friend 2 always beats me, but friend 1 can always beat friend 2.
Just goes to show, how much it's all about strategy and knowing your opponent!

[blondie]

I made a chess webapp in php with lots of Fairie Chess pieces. Each game both players draft their army. Never found anyone to playtest it with, probably needs tons of game balancing.

& I suck at chess puzzles

[Amaso]

Promote another game on a dying game ggs.

[Titanoboa]

Promote another game on a dying game ggs.

ok, LOL

[Titanoboa]

I made a chess webapp in php with lots of Fairie Chess pieces. Each game both players draft their army. Never found anyone to playtest it with, probably needs tons of game balancing.

Cool! I guess you gave up on me & didn't ask because I'm so conservative with the chess stuff xD
However, if I ever have too much money, I'm buying a Capablanca chess set.

Got from 1906 to 1956 last night \o/ Beat 9 and failed at 1. Weird considering how sleepy I was.

[Olive]

time for a directory?

<-- sandersander

[blondie]

I made a chess webapp in php with lots of Fairie Chess pieces. Each game both players draft their army. Never found anyone to playtest it with, probably needs tons of game balancing.

Cool! I guess you gave up on me & didn't ask because I'm so conservative with the chess stuff xD

well even in limited testing, it became very clear my faerie pieces weren't well thought out and I haven't gotten around to rethinking them, partly because my playtester (father) lost interest after the first game anyway.

[compguygene]

Well, I have never tried chess puzzles in the past. But recently, my 20 year old son has finally been playing chess against an AI on his laptop and against me on a real chess board. So, this has really re-kindled interest in chess for me. I am so terrible at these, that it is a real education for me, thank you letting us know about the site, Titanoboa.

[Phytotron]

Can we have a game where all pieces are Kings?

[Durf]

How would you checkmate? or check for that matter?
Is there a king's king? Are they actually kings or just pawns that can move backwards?

(p.s. really liking the website)

[blondie]

I put my drafting chess thing up here: http://revolverarma.tk/cold-war/

needs a lot of game balancing and is very bad atm. The engine is not entirely complete (no pawn promotion and it doesn't tell you when you're checkmated, although you can tell because none of your moves are legal, I've just not yet coded the part where it tells you you're dead) but is very versatile and can support basically any type of piece. That said, the current pieces suck. I can't do very much with it without a dedicated playtester, so if you're interested and have better vision for this than I do, let me know.

[orion]

heh, remind me this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nsaAkNXAzak


good luck with the game!

[Titanoboa]

I'm currently going back and forth between 1900 and 2000, I hope I'll soon be good enough to be at 2000+ consistently.

I'm at 2034 now! \o/

I put my drafting chess thing up here: http://revolverarma.tk/cold-war/

Onice.



When looking at your pieces I got a silly* idea. Something with a boomerang. I suppose they should have limited movement. They capture anything diagonally in front, or 2 steps directly ahead, and they stay where they are after killing. There can only be one piece in the path for it to be able to kill. Aborigine? ^^

*silly indeed.

[Titanoboa]

ohai. Thought I'd share a nice puzzle, where it's white to play and win.
Black has a queen for a rook and knight, so it looks like black is doing fine, but white has some tricks.
I'll put the solution and final position below.

Solution:
1.e6-e7 Promoting the pawn to a queen is white's best bet, so let's go for it.
... Qa3+ Black wants to stop this. If king moves, Queen takes pawn and black is ok.
2.Rb4 Blocking the check with the rook.
... Qa7+ Black insists, and attacks the pawn again while giving a check.
3.Kxc4 Unable to stop the capture of the e7 pawn, the white king snatches black's most dangerous pawn.
... Qxe7 Queen takes pawn, as advertised.

And now, the fireworks begin.

4.Nxg6+ A royal fork on the king and queen. Black better take it, or else.
... fxg6 Black takes it (cuz or else).
5.Bf6+ We just gave away a horse, why not a bishop too while we're at it? This forks the king and queen again, so...
... Qxf6 Om nom nom. Tired of being forked, the queen swallows the bishop diagonally.
6.Kd5+ Is white going to sacrifice the king too? Hope not. This king move puts the black king in check, tho.
... Kg5 So he moved.
7.h2-h4+ Check.
... Kf5 Only legal move.
8.g2-g4+ Let's give away some more material.
... hxg4 Only legal move.
9.Rf4+ Who needs pieces, anyway? Here, take my rook!
... Bxf4 Only legal move.
10. e4# Bam. Checkmate with the pawn.

Final position:

finalposition.jpg (19.28 KiB) Viewed 4971 times